I wish I was on the wagon ...

Oh dear, a little too much drink too quickly last night ... so nothing terribly intellectual today.

Always wondered where "on the wagon "came from. There seem to be various definitions so I'll choose the one I like - well, "it is my party and I'll do what I want to" ... you'll have to be my age to know where that lyric comes from. So here goes ...

In days of yore, those folk who were being lead to the gallows through the centre of London were given drinks from pubs en route ... they walked behind a carriage/wagon to which they were tethered . The only person not allowed to have a drink was the "prison officer" who was driving the wagon ...

Hence "on the wagon" meaning ... not drinking.